Coffee Cupping

Coffee cupping is coffee tasting with special techniques and procedures. This was another of my Explorer Group activities. It was all about coffee. This is the classroom directions for coffee tasting. We also had a score sheet divided into multiple categories to rate the coffee. I would share my score sheet but it was a mess!

What did I learn during the 2 hour class? I learned that when I taste coffee all I taste is coffee. Confused? What I do not taste is any of the following: chocolate, vanilla, fruit, citrus, mushrooms, garlic, onions or any of the other notes people detect in coffee. (B says I only have this kind of palate for chocolate). Here's a closeup of the taste/aroma chart. These are things you might experience. You are free to suggest other tastes and or aromas as you "grade" the coffee based on your perceptions.

I was able to detect differences in aroma and fragrance.  (Yes these are  two different things. I could also sense a difference in what they call aftertaste. It's not so much about the taste of the aftertaste but how long it lasts. I still don't know what my favorite type of coffee might be. We only tasted 3 types of coffee. I can sense what I like and don't like but don't understand yet the why part. Of the three tasted, I preferred the Toraja. I have also found a Java coffee I really like.

For the cupping, you sample the coffee first by smelling it.To 8.25 g of ground coffee you add 150 ml of less than boiling, low mineral water. I don't remember the exact temperature we used in class. You "brew" it 4 minutes. After testing it for fragrance, the procedure has you taking two spoons and scooping the floating coffee grounds off the top of the liquid. Now you are ready to taste the coffee hot. You taste it later after it's cooled down slightly. To taste the coffee you strongly slurp a spoonful into your mouth so it assaults your tastebuds with gusto!

Preparing for the coffee tasting is similar to the way coffee is traditionally prepared. It's called kopi tubruk. I asked my helper Ibu Tin about kopi tubruk and she said she makes it by dumping sugar and coffee grounds into the cup, she adds the water and lets it sit a few minutes and then drinks it. Maybe if the grounds are fine enough they all settle down quickly? She says she does not need to skim anything off the top apparently. Here are some of the ladies during class.